This invention generally relates to intravascular catheters used for stent delivery and percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA).
PTCA is a widely used procedure for the treatment of coronary heart disease. In this procedure, a balloon on the catheter is inflated within the stenotic region of the patient's artery to open up the arterial passageway and thereby increase the blood flow through the artery.
Typically, a guiding catheter having a preshaped distal tip is first percutaneously introduced into the cardiovascular system of a patient by the Seldinger technique through the brachial or femoral arteries. The catheter is advanced until the preshaped distal tip of the guiding catheter is disposed within the aorta adjacent to the ostium of the desired coronary artery; and the distal tip of the guiding catheter is then maneuvered into the ostium. A balloon dilation catheter may then be advanced through the guiding catheter into the patient's coronary artery until the balloon on the catheter is disposed within the stenotic region of the patient's artery. The balloon is inflated to open up the arterial passageway. Generally, the inflated diameter of the balloon is approximately the same diameter as the native diameter of the body lumen being dilated so as to complete the dilation but not over expand the artery wall. After the balloon is finally deflated, blood flow resumes through the dilated artery and the dilation catheter can be removed.
A continual effort has been made in the development of intravascular catheters, to reduce the transverse dimensions or profiles of such catheters, particularly at the catheter tip. A catheter having a small or reduced profile generally has a greater ability to cross lesions and tight vasculatures. Despite much technical progress in this area, the need for intravascular catheters having greater reduced profiles at the catheter tip remains. The present invention satisfies these needs.